Sokriatos
Sokriatos (Kalopian: Σωκριάτος transl. Sōkriátos) was a classical philosopher from Kalopia, often credited as founder of philosophy. As he never wrote any of his work down, most of what is known about Sokriatos is based on the work of other prominent figures, especially Piletus. Due to the nature of may of these writings, it is unclear how much of what is attributed to Sokriatos he actually said. Understanding The modern understanding of Sokriatos' life is based primarily on the work of Piletus as well as several others who were either alive during his lifetime or shortly after he had died. Problems arise due to the nature of the writings about Sokriatos, which are usually partially fictionalised and, in the case of Piletus, utilise him as a device for espousing thoughts on many topics. While some of this may have been said by Sokriatos himself, it's likely that at least some of the ideas were actually formulated by Piletus. Life Information about Sokriatos' life, including his dates of birth and death are unclear. Most knowledge of his actions and ideas are based on a combination of a handful of contemporary writers and some later ancient biographers. The context of many of these writings, some of which deliberately parodied the life of Sokriatos, mean that it is difficult to establish a real understanding of his personality. In his early life, Sokriatos spent time as a stonemason before joining the military as a soldier. During this period, the Kalopian city-states were in a stage of political turmoil and Sokriatos was notable for his criticism of many ideals fundamental to the governing elite. Ultimately, this led to his arrest, trial and death sentence for "corruption of the youth". Philosophy Sokriatic method The Sokriatic method, also referred to as maieutics, involves a dialogue between individuals which is based on cooperative arguments to stimulate critical thinking. The purpose of the Sokriatic method is to encourage an individual to consider the contradictions in, or to gain a deeper understanding of, their beliefs. In this way, the Sokriatic method can be described as a negative method of hypothesis elimination, in that it exposes beliefs which lead to contradictions by persistent questioning. Beliefs Lack of concrete evidence makes it difficult to differentiate the philosophical beliefs of Piletus and Sokriatos. The only thing that can be said for certain about his views are that they were in opposition to the contemporary public and intellectual opinion of the period. During his trial, he says that the jurors are "concerned with their families, careers, and political responsibilities when they ought to be worried about the welfare of their souls". Nature of knowledge A statement frequently attributed to Sokriatos is "I know that I know nothing", though this is paraphrased. In the context which it appears (in the writings of Piletos), this is taken to highlight that those who claim to be wise cannot be so because they are underestimating the scale of human ignorance. Furthermore, he believed that wisdom was synonymous with virtue and that wrongdoing was the result of ignorance. Politics Sokriatos was opposed to the principle of democracy which was prevalent during his lifetime. In terms of government, he favoured a system led by philosophers as he deemed them to be the only kind of person suitable to govern others. Category:Philosophers Category:Philosophy Category:Kalopia Category:Culture of Kalopia